Flowcharts expose waste

My first insight, that process maps are primarily to make processes more efficient and not to document them leads naturally into this - flowcharts which identify all non-value-adding activity are most valuable in illuminating inefficiencies.

An initial draft of a flowchart that describes one’s own work process is likely to miss waste. Users don’t naturally think of a wait they’re familiar with as a non-value-adding activity that might be removed or shortened. The familiar is accepted as a fact of life; only the unusual comes to our attention. It’s when we look for instances of the various types, such as waits, movements, and approvals, that we begin to accurately draw our flow and the waste becomes apparent ((Damelio)).

Business processes are in a state of constant flux. The people who perform parts of the process flow usually create a process that works for them at the time but rarely do they revisit the original process as the business changes. Collaborative activities such as drafting a flowchart give users a fresh perspective on the work they do day-to-day and can help them spot the inefficiencies that they’ve taken for granted after long use. That’s why it’s imperative for a consultant or business leader to understand what the types of waste are so as to elicit their presence and put them into the flowchart diagram.

Amie’s Aunt Barb runs a convenience store in the Black Hills. Barb recently left her shop in the care of Amie’s mom, Jaynee. During Barb’s absence, Jaynee discovered several ways to make Barb’s day-to-day work more efficient. She began to call ahead and order the week’s supplies from town instead of walking Walmart’s aisles and saved herself two hours of shopping. Jaynee also trained an employee to manage a simple but regular supply order. Although Barb’s owned this store for years, it took a fresh perspective to see how these processes could be made more efficient. It’s not always possible for me to utilize an outside perspective to find ways to make processes better, nor does a single person’s word often convince others of the benefit of change. I’d like to use flowcharts and swimlanes to describe my current processes (especially those that I don’t understand end-to-end) and help me to view activities that add no customer value.

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